The present invention relates in general to the application to a variety of transaction and business processes of the communication mechanism and geolocation functionality employed in a radio-tagged object location and tracking system of the type described in the U.S. Patents to Belcher et al, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,920,287 and 5,995,046, (hereinafter referred to as the ""287 and ""046 patents, respectively), assigned to the assignee of the present application and the disclosures of which are incorporated herein.
The invention is particularly directed to the use of the spread spectrum communication and geolocation functionality of the patented system to both convey information associated with a transaction of a tagged object and to allow the site of the object conducting the transaction to be geolocated. This dual functionality allows an ancillary transaction controller to interactively focus or target one or more additional transactions with respect to the tagged object, which may be an individual, such as a customer, patient, client, or the like of an institution (e.g., retailer, hospital, etc.) in which the geolocation system is installed.
The general architecture of the radio tagged object geolocation systems described in the above-referenced ""287 and ""046 Patents is diagrammatically shown in FIG. 1 as comprising a plurality of tag emission readers 10 that are installed at precisely geographically known and relatively unobtrusive locations in and/or around the perimeter of an asset management environment 12. The asset management environment contains a plurality of objects/assets 14, to which radio-containing xe2x80x98tagsxe2x80x99 16 are affixed.
As a result of radio emissions from the tags 16, the locations of the objects 14 can be monitored on what is effectively a continuous basis by the readers 10 and reported to an asset management database 20. This database may be accessed by way of a digital computer workstation or personal computer 26. Advantageously, the tag-to-system infrastructure communication reliability of the geolocation system of the ""287 and ""640 patents is inherently very high, as the readers are spatially distributed to ensure that a transmission from any tag will always be received by at least three and preferably four readers.
In order that the system may locate and track the objects, the system employs a spread spectrum wireless communication infrastructure between the tags and the readers. In this communication infrastructure, each radio tag 16 is operative to repeatedly transmit or xe2x80x98blinkxe2x80x99 a short duration, wideband (spread spectrum) pulse of RF energy. This RF pulse is encoded with the identification of its associated object and ancillary information stored in a tag memory.
These short duration spread spectrum emissions from a tag are detected by the tag emission readers 10, outputs of which are coupled to an associated reader output processor of an RF processing system 24. This processor correlates the spread spectrum signals received from a tag with a set of spread spectrum reference signal patterns, in order to determine which spread spectrum signals received by the reader is a first-to-arrive spread spectrum signal burst transmitted from a tag. The first-to-arrive signals are then coupled to an object geolocation processor, which performs time-of-arrival differentiation of the detected first-to-arrive transmissions, to geolocate (within a prescribed spatial resolution, e.g., on the order of ten feet) the tagged object of interest.
As pointed out above, and as described in detail in the ""046 and ""287 applications, whenever a tag blinks, it transmits a burst of spread spectrum RF energy that is encoded with the identification of the tagged object and also ancillary information stored in a tag memory. The tag memory may also store parameter data provided by an auxiliary device, such as a transducer or sensor associated with the object of interest (for example a temperature sensor coupled directly to the tag), or it may receive data downloaded to the tag from another device, such as a wireless interrogating unit. This ability of the tag to incorporate auxiliary information into the tag""s wireless communication (spread spectrum RF burst) to the geolocation infrastructure makes the patented geolocation system a very powerful tool for augmenting and customizing a variety of business transactions and processes.
Pursuant to a first embodiment, a geolocation radio tag-based communication link is established between the geolocation system and an ancillary (portable) computing device. The computing device is interfaced as an auxiliary input to the radio tag, so as to enable the spread spectrum transmission mechanism of the tag radio to be used to transmit transaction data associated with the operation of the computing device to the geolocation infrastructure, as well as geolocating the tag (and thereby the computing device).
In accordance with a second embodiment, the scanning of barcode information is combined with the real-time location functionality of the geolocation system. This is very practical for inventory, as it enables the identity of an item to be coupled with its location. The barcode information is coupled as an auxiliary data input to the geolocation systems radio tag for storage in tag memory, while operation of the barcode scanning device may be an auxiliary trigger input to the transmitter circuitry of the radio tag. This allows scanned barcode information to be wirelessly conveyed to the user""s information system, together with the location of the scan event as determined by the geolocation system, as the time of the occurrence of the scan event.
A third embodiment combines the identification and operation of a digital camera with the real-time location functionality of the geolocation system. The identification of the digital camera is stored in the tag memory, while the image capture operation of the camera (photo number) is auxiliary data to the tag memory. Activation of the camera is supplied as a transmission activation input to the tag radio. As a consequence, at the taking of the xe2x80x9csnapshotxe2x80x9d, the geolocation tag-augmented digital camera causes the transmission of a camera identification signal to the readers of the geolocation system. This enables the location of the camera to be correlated with its captured image to be readily identified at the time of the photograph is taken.
In a fourth embodiment, a geolocation radio tag is worn by an individual within a xe2x80x98sectorizedxe2x80x99 paging system environment, comprised of a plurality of addressable paging cells each of which contains one or more paging speaker units. In this embodiment, the ability of the associated geolocation system to locate the person to be paged allows a paging system operator to deliver a page from only that particular cell in which the person is located. This not only reduces technical difficulties in executing the page, but reduces the range requirements and paging load.
A fifth embodiment has the geolocation system installed in a retail establishment equipped with one or more electronic messaging units distributed throughout the store for advertising, emergency information, etc. Upon entering the store, the customer is issued a xe2x80x98trackingxe2x80x99 tag, memory of which has been loaded with customer identification information. This allows the store""s geolocation system to track the customer, and provides a key to a customer associated database. Using this database, and knowledge of the customer""s whereabouts, the electronic messaging subsystem may be used to issue customer-specific advertising messages, when the customer enters a specific area containing products for which the database indicates a customer interest or preference.
In a sixth embodiment, a customer with a shopping cart is provided with a portable scanning device equipped with a geolocation radio tag that allows a shopper to scan an item and wirelessly execute a sales transaction with a remote point of sales terminal, that is linked to the geolocation system. The sales transaction may be completed by means of the shopper""s credit card or in accordance with a previously arranged account. Thus, the wireless link provides both the sales transaction data and the location where the item is purchased.
As an adjunct, the customer""s shopping cart may be equipped with its own geolocation radio tag. When the shopper enters the store and procures a shopping cart, the customer scans in identification data into the cart-mounted radio tag, so that the cart and its radio tag now become associated with a specific shopper. The location of the cart and its tag are continuously monitored by the store""s geolocation system. This allows an electronic messaging subsystem to issue customer-specific advertizing messages, when the customer enters a specific area containing products for which the database indicates a customer interest or preference. It also allows customer sales transactions to be fully automated using a wireless scanner and the geolocation system.